Greetings:
The other day I started up the car and my wipers and washer came on. I could not shut either of them off. I turned to the fast, slow and off position, but the wipers and washer just keep on running. The only way I can make them stop is to turn off the car or pull the wiper fuse. I sure hope this doesn't mean I have to pull/replace the signal light assembly. Any suggestions?
Avro '84 Caprice Classic Wagon (Woody)
305, 4bbl, Auto
I had this happen on an Oldsmobile in the era 84-85, just as you describe. We had a short rain shower at lunchtime and after activating the wipers, I couldnt turn them off.
It was a company car so it was sent to the company garage for repair. When I got it back, I was somewhat curious and noticed that the mechanic had installed a diode or suchlike under the hood arount the pump mechanism/ wiper motor.
Hate to be so vague, but apparently this was a problem that was not unusual in GM cars of that day, and there was a kit to fix it.
I never got into it any deeper, as my focus was not in auto repair, at that time.
Yours could be something totally different. I just remembered this incident when I read your post and thought it might jog some of the older mechanics' memories as well.
I got curious and did a little search on this problem. One of the causes is a defective park mechanism, which may be caused by gelled grease in the case where the mechanism operates the park switch. The switch also could be bad.
I found one reference to a problem, as the one I had, which seemed to come from the washer pump unit, but it was not well documented
Well you won't believe it... I pulled the fuse for a few days, put it back in and all works fine now. Must have been a little electrical glitch.
That little electrical glitch is likely to rear its ugly head again.
Well you won't believe it... I pulled the fuse for a few days, put it back in and all works fine now. Must have been a little electrical glitch.
My thoughts exactly.
Yes, it appears that the electrical glitch did rear its ugly head again. I'm back to square one.
You need a body service manual from that approximate year and you need to go thru the diagnostic procedures for the symptom you're experiencing.
Sorry to come into this thread late, but my dad had the same problem with his '73 Chevy pickup. It had the washer pump on the front of the wiper motor. Not sure why, but something had failed in the washer pump that was allowing the wipers and washers to remain engaged all the time. Replacing the washer pump fixed it.
nate
You have a bad wiper switch/lever. On that car it should be on the turn signal lever. Look on ebay and you can get one for $19.99 plus shipping...I just did this for my 84 parisienne and the problem was solved! A new switch at a parts store costs around $75 so the one on ebay is definately a good deal. Hope this helps.
I had a similar situation and mentioned it to him earlier in the thread, Nate.
Cars dont usually heal themselves, do they?
Whenever they do, it makes me very, very nervous...
nate
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